Acrophobia - what is it? This is the name for fear of heights, and it is the most common fear associated with spatial discomfort. This phobia is considered a mild degree of neurosis, which does not lead to any consequences. But such fear warns that a person has an imbalance and is prone to mental disorders.
Many people at high altitude experience fear and dizziness. And people who suffer from acrophobia experience such fear more vividly and expressively. They experience an attack of nausea and irresistible horror, strong salivation appears, breathing and heart rate increase, body temperature drops, and the work of the gastrointestinal tract increases.
The concept of “acrophobia”: what is it?
Acrophobia
- This is a fear of heights. Fear of heights is a fairly mild stage of neurosis. Pathology is not considered critical in medicine only because it cannot prevent a person from socializing and living a full life.
For example, agoraphobia (fear of open areas and large crowds of people) can lead to confinement of a person within the confines of his home, the inability to work and perform basic everyday activities (going to the store). In order to live normally, a person does not need to jump from a parachute or climb Everest.
Acrophobia can lead to only a few restrictions for a person: refusal to live on a high floor, inability to ride a cable car, fly in a hot air balloon, visit a water park, etc.
At the same time, the presence of acrophobia indicates that a person has deviations in the functioning of the nervous system and preconditions for mental disorders. The number of people suffering from fear of heights in the world is 5 percent, which is not so small considering the size of the planet's population.
Physiological features
Acrophobia gets its name from the fear of heights. During this period, a number of processes occur in the cerebral cortex. This applies to traumatic situations and the sensations that an acrophobe experiences during this. This is a strong fear, excessive anxiety. After a certain period of time, the processes continue to function normally.
At the moment of acrophobia, neural networks continue to be activated, which is why the strength of fear only intensifies. Thoughts of fear and being at heights plunge an acrophobe into horror. At this moment, the neurons become even more excited.
How does acrophobia differ from natural fear of heights?
There is probably no person who doesn’t have a “sick feeling in the pit of his stomach” at the moment when he stands on the edge of a cliff or rides a cable car or rides a Ferris wheel. Fear is a basic feeling of a healthy psyche.
Without fear, humanity would have died out long ago, doing crazy things. But, if a person is simply afraid to find himself on the roof of a multi-story building, he will take measures to step back from the edge and will not take steps forward. At the same time, his physical and emotional state will remain virtually unchanged.
Another thing is a phobia, in which a person is paralyzed by fear. He loses his sense of reality, his consciousness may “float”. An acrophobe cannot make rational decisions at this moment. For example, calmly take a step back to be safe.
Unlike natural fear, in the case of acrophobia, pathological fear is constantly intensifying. Symptoms appear even when falling at a low altitude, when there is no real danger. For example, an adult is afraid to stand with his feet on a chair.
Another distinguishing feature of a phobia from a reasonable fear is avoidance behavior. A person who does not suffer from a pathological fear of heights can, if necessary, be on heights and do so completely calmly. An acrophobe will consciously avoid places and situations in which he will have to experience fear.
Acrophobia is of an irrational nature, based on logic, and a person is not able to evaluate his fear. It is objectively clear that if you do not take a step forward, you will not fall and there is nothing to be afraid of.
Thus, let us highlight three main distinctive features that are unique to phobias:
:
- Paralysis of will and consciousness in a state of fear.
- Increasing symptoms of the disease without proper treatment.
- Avoidance of traumatic situations.
The listed signs can be used to recognize any kind of phobias.
Treatment
How to get rid of Acrophobia
A person suffering from this kind of phobia will require enormous efforts. What do we have to do? Complex treatment: drugs + psychotherapy. The use of tranquilizers for a period of 2-3 weeks and antidepressants for a period of 6 months is inevitable.
Medicines that stimulate blood circulation are used by doctors to treat acrophobia:
- Benzodiazepines calm the patient and have an anticonvulsant effect.
- Beta inhibitors prevent the active production of adrenaline, prevent panic attacks, normalizing the human condition.
- Nootropic drugs are used to stimulate brain functions and increase resistance to emotional and mental stress.
- Also, a person prone to acrophobia needs to take vitamin complexes.
A hypnotic trance has a strong influence, but an experienced psychologist must introduce the patient into such a state.
Therapy based on self-control and relaxation brings results to desperate people. Many people try to cope with the symptoms of acrophobia on their own, but this is almost impossible if the case is advanced. When self-medicating, the situation may worsen, because a person may misdiagnose himself or be guided by false advice.
The technique to help cure a phobia is based on 4 tips:
- It is necessary to find the cause of the phobia.
- You need to overcome fear by imagining the picture of being on the roof of a house. Do the exercise every day.
- Try to be on top often.
- Control and self-hypnosis of the absence of danger.
VR as one of the ways to treat fear of heights
There is cognitive behavioral therapy, which has been widely used in recent years. Control must be established over two factors, mental and physical. Thanks to the system, fear remains at the hormonal level.
Neurolinguistic programming is a technique that influences the past. It is necessary to return to the moment when there was a fear of heights. Negativity turns into positivity.
Cognitive behavioral therapy is a specific technique for relaxing muscles and tightness. The patient overcomes his fear of heights at a slow pace, taking small steps.
Psychotherapists use cognitive behavioral therapy with deep hypnosis techniques. The technique acts on a person’s subconscious and fights internal, unconscious causes. The emotional state and behavior program, which previously gave rise to panic, are normalized.
Research stages
- The doctor begins working with the patient by examining his condition. He models situations that cause fear in the patient. Corrects emerging feelings and emotions.
- The psychotherapist confronts the person with a real threat. Attacks of terror occur. Virtual reality simulators help you control the situation. A stable, sustainable reaction is formed on the basis of experience.
- Yoga, meditation and breathing exercises help overcome fear. You need to master relaxation techniques.
- Computer games where the player personifies himself with a virtual hero, runs and jumps, can give a good effect. Movies with staged jumps help you get used to the idea of life without fear of heights.
First of all, people with acrophobia do not need to give up, become isolated and stop going out.
You need to face your fears. Only the patient himself is able to take the first step by recognizing the problem and starting to fight it. Milyukova Yuno Nov 16, 2018
Why is a person afraid of heights: the main causes of phobia
To date, psychiatry has not developed a consensus on the causes of fear of heights. There are several versions that do not exclude, but complement each other.
Innate fear
An interesting experiment was conducted. Scientists specially organized an unusual surface: one part of it was completely transparent, and the second was made like a regular floor. Below this model there was a void, creating the illusion of an abyss.
It was found that young children categorically refused to be on a transparent surface, despite the persuasion and inspiring examples of their parents.
This suggests that a person has a fear of heights at the genetic level. Such fear, by the way, is also inherent in other representatives of the animal world that have the function of vision and do not have the ability to fly.
Organic brain lesions
This pathology can occur in connection with previous diseases of infectious or viral origin. Abuse of alcohol, drugs and psychotropic substances also has a detrimental effect on neural connections.
Psychasthenic personality constitution
There are people who are called thin-skinned or highly sensitive. Their nature is such that they react sharply to all experiences, have suspiciousness and high anxiety.
Such people do not feel well in bright light, loud sounds, or prolonged communication with people. They are the ones who turn away when watching films with scenes of violence and are afraid of the sight of blood. Highly sensitive people are misunderstood by many and their reactions are often considered a weakness. Meanwhile, there are about 10 percent of them among us.
A special mental makeup can lead to the development of many phobias, including fear of heights.
Traumatic events from the past
If a person has once had a fear of heights or had an unpleasant experience of falling in the past, they may develop acrophobia. At the same time, he does not necessarily remember the circumstances of his fear, which could be deposited in the unconscious. This is a direct connection between falling from a height and the fear of it.
Another factor causing acrophobia is considered to be weakness of the vestibular apparatus, which is responsible for the ability to maintain body balance in space.
Thus, acrophobia is a pathology that may have one or several causes; it is not always possible to reliably determine them.
Who is most susceptible to acrophobia?
- Managers are most susceptible to any phobias. This is a profession that carries all the delights of phobias. In other words, these are leaders, people who work a lot and rest little.;
- These are also those who are in a family but feel lonely. They do not receive support, they are not accepted.;
- If we talk about roles in society and gender division, then the most common problems encountered are male leaders and single women who are not accepted. Representatives of the stronger sex accumulate stress faster because they cannot show their emotionality to the extent that the fair half of humanity can. "Do not Cry! You are a man!" - the most popular phrase at the stage of raising a boy. So and besides this, men need to support their family and earn more, and as a result, work more.;
- Of course, we can talk about role conflict. Let's say, when the husband tells his wife that he wants a child, otherwise he will leave, but she is not ready, thus, does not accept her role.;
- The last category is people with unfulfilled dreams, goals, and ambitions. An example would be a female astronaut. Society says that this is unthinkable; they don’t understand the profession as such. This is how the girl grows up, and everything seems to be fine - college, successful work and... Phobias! How to explain? It's very simple. The child's need remained until adulthood, as it was not realized anywhere. The energy was suppressed in the past, but remained in the depths, and, unfortunately, found a way out in fear.
Reading: How to get rid of guilt?
What are the symptoms of acrophobia?
Fear of heights has different manifestations depending on the physical and emotional state of a person. However, there are a number of typical signs that a person has symptoms of acrophobia.
Physical
The first reflex of a person who is afraid of heights and finds himself on it is the desire to grab with his hands any nearby, stable object: a tree, a handrail, etc. Many people instinctively lie down or sit on a hard surface.
As with other types of phobias and panic attacks, the characteristic manifestations are
:
- Heavy, intermittent breathing.
- Dizziness.
- Increased sweating.
- Dry mouth.
- Unpleasant sensations from the gastrointestinal tract, diarrhea.
Blood pressure may rise sharply, body heat and hot flashes may appear. In some cases, nausea and tremors of the limbs appear.
Mental
The main mental symptom of fear of heights is a person’s loss of control over his emotions and consciousness. The person is in prostration and does not understand well what is happening around him. Many acrophobes feel a desire to jump down, the abyss beckons them.
A person begins to panic, he tries to close his face or eyes, and stupor sets in. The acrophobe gets stuck in one place, from where it is very difficult to move him.
Fear of heights is often combined with other types of phobias
:
- Climacophobia
is the fear of climbing stairs. - Aerophobia
is the fear of flying in airplanes, balloons, and helicopters. - Bathophobia
is the fear of a sharp rise, a difference between height and depth.
All of the listed forms of phobias are not necessarily present at the same time, but in most cases complement each other.
conclusions
It should be remembered that a phobia is an anxiety state that accompanies fear and appropriate behavior in a given situation.
Many difficulties arise with this disease. After all, the manifestation of panic attacks of acrophobia negatively affects not only a person’s well-being and health, but also his quality of life.
Remember that treating fear of heights on your own will not bring the expected effect. The symptoms of acrophobia in this case may decrease for a short time, then reappear. After all, the chronic nature of stress perception remains the same.
It is worth noting the effectiveness of an integrated approach to treating acrophobia. When used in combination with a course of psychotherapy, it improves the effectiveness of treatment. The most optimal treatment can be considered the option of seeking help from a specialist.
Manifestation of acrophobia in children
In children, acrophobia can be either congenital or a consequence of the child being dropped or falling on his own. Sometimes the fear of heights in children is provoked by the parents themselves through excessive care.
The child experiences significant discomfort even when he is on a slight elevation - a stool, a high chair. Like an adult in a state of panic attack, a child's heart rate increases, he becomes dizzy, feels nauseous, and has a fever.
If an adult with acrophobia cannot control his emotions, then what can we say about a child whose psyche is just developing. Panic does not allow the child to make a decision about how to protect himself and get down from the hill.
To develop an adequate response to heights in a child and stabilize the functioning of the vestibular apparatus, any jumping (on a trampoline, jump rope), riding bicycles and scooters, climbing ropes and children's sports ladders are very helpful. Such activities should be encouraged.
If your child has had a negative experience of falling from a hill and has already developed fear, then you need to gently explain to him that nothing terrible happened and there is no need to be afraid of possible falls. A good educational example would be cartoons and children's programs in which characters overcome similar fears.
How to get rid of acrophobia with the help of specialists
Acrophobia is a disease in which, if it is mild, you can live comfortably and not worry about your mental health. In most cases, no one forces people to climb to the top and stand on the edge of the abyss.
It's another matter if fear of heights causes daily stress. And its manifestations are expressed very clearly. For example, a person lives on a high floor and does not have the opportunity to move to another apartment or works on the top floor of a building. Such people who systematically suppress their phobia are likely to develop a depressive disorder.
Thus, depending on the severity of the disease and the frequency of its manifestation, the phobia must be treated.
How to prevent panic attacks if you have a fear of heights:
- Autotraining and visualization
. In a calm and relaxed state, imagine yourself being on a hill, preferably in the place where you actually experienced a panic attack. Convince yourself of safety, look around with your inner gaze, find arguments that exclude the causes of fear. With regular exercise, the subconscious will record positive reactions to heights. - Determine for yourself a critical height, for example, 3 or 4 meters
. Gradually carry out lifting exercises to a lower height - 1-2 meters. Gradually, you will be able to calmly climb to a level that does not cause panic.
If the disease is pronounced and interferes with normal life, then you should contact a professional: a psychotherapist or psychiatrist.
The doctor will first conduct a diagnosis, finding out the duration of the symptoms of the disease and its specific signs. Practical tests can be performed to record the patient’s sensations.
Drug treatment is used only to relieve acute symptoms of the disease, such as neurosis, excessive anxiety, depression, if they occur in a person. Anti-anxiety, sedative drugs, and in rare cases antidepressants are prescribed.
Good results in the treatment of acrophobia are shown by hypnosis sessions, in which entering a trance is accompanied by a corrective effect on the patient’s subconscious.
The following therapeutic method is based on the principle: “The best way to overcome fear is to face it head-on.”
First, the psychotherapist helps the patient relax using the complete relaxation method. No medications are used in this case.
Next, a practical lesson takes place, during which the person is placed on a small hill, while the doctor is nearby. There is an artificial infusion of fear, its provocation. Height simulation can be created using special virtual simulators.
As soon as fear arises, the patient begins to apply the knowledge received from the doctor to neutralize it.
As soon as a small height is conquered, all three stages are repeated at another level, until the signs of panic attacks completely disappear.
If acrophobia interferes with your normal life, and you are unable to overcome your fear on your own, contact a specialist. There are enough methods of help in this case in modern psychiatry.
Establishing diagnosis
Knowing what fear of heights is called is not enough to have a complete understanding of the disease. Despite the fact that the diagnosis does not cause problems (moreover, the person himself perfectly understands the groundlessness of this fear), it is necessary to consult a specialist. An experienced doctor will make a diagnosis by asking just a few questions. Here it is important to exclude other disorders that may have acrophobia as a symptom.
As a rule, one consultation is enough for the psychotherapist to make a diagnosis and draw up a rough treatment plan. An appointment with a doctor will cost 500-1000 rubles, depending on the pricing policy of the clinic and the city of residence. Approximate prices for treatment should be obtained directly from the doctor. The cost depends on the number of sessions required to get rid of the phobia.
